Reviews show that Tacos Tin Tan serves tasty tacos with standout birria and fresh ingredients, and the overall vibe is welcoming with friendly staff and a lively colorful setting. Many diners praise the birria tacos as among the best in Montreal and note solid drinks and occasional brunch options. Some readers express disappointment with portion sizes for the price and with changes to the recipe, such as pico de gallo toppings replacing the previous grilled peppers and onions, which affected the flavor for some. Service experiences vary, from quick attentive visits to longer waits or uneven service, and a few drinks or cocktails are described as underwhelming. Nevertheless, regulars often return for flavorful meat, the vibrant atmosphere, and Tin Tan's consistency that keeps it a popular spot for Mexican food lovers.
For years it's been one of those places I pass almost daily heading to & from the gym, always glancing inside with curiosity, but somehow the timing never lined up.
Finally, on an absolutely glorious spring afternoon around 3 PM, the moment arrived.
My wife & I were wandering back from Mile End while St-Denis was closed off for a comic art festival. The terraces at Taco Tin Tan were absolutely bopping with energy & people enjoying the weather. The whole place felt alive.
That was enough for me.
I finally said:
'Today's the day.'
What I Liked:
The atmosphere immediately pulls you in.
They have two separate terraces:
* one directly on the street,
* & another attached to the front of the building.
Both looked fantastic, but we opted to sit inside where it was quieter & where my wife's aggressively pale complexion could avoid turning into a rotisserie chicken under the afternoon sun.
Honestly, it may have been the best guacamole either of us has had. Fresh, bright, perfectly textured, topped with tomato, onion, & radish, served alongside excellent house-made tortilla chips.
We demolished it.
Completely.
Unfortunately… we also managed to finish the entire guacamole before our drinks even arrived, which kind of summarizes the service experience overall.
The tacos themselves were fresh & enjoyable. Not life-changing'best taco of my existence' territory, but definitely solid & satisfying.
Atmosphere & Vibe:
This place absolutely nails the visual vibe.
Inside, it feels warm, lively, & authentically inspired without crossing into over-designed'theme restaurant' territory. The music, colours, energy, & open-front layout all work together really well.
& on a sunny day with St-Denis buzzing outside?
The whole experience feels very Montréal summer.
Exactly the kind of energy you want from a casual taco spot.
Now unfortunately… this is where the service issue becomes impossible to ignore.
After being seated, we waited roughly:
* 15 minutes before anyone returned,
* no drink order,
* no water,
* no acknowledgment.
I was personally ready to leave after about 10 minutes, but my wife convinced me to give it a little longer.
Right as I was preparing to stand up & walk out, the server finally arrived & apologized before taking our order.
The frustrating part wasn't that anyone was rude.
They weren't.
Everyone was friendly enough.
The issue was simply inattentiveness & pacing throughout the meal:
* long waits for drinks,
* long waits between courses,
* long waits for the bill.
At multiple points it felt like we had simply disappeared from the restaurant's awareness.
Closing:
Overall, I'm glad I finally stopped into Taco Tin Tan.
The food was good.
The guacamole was exceptional.
The atmosphere was fantastic.
But the service unfortunately held the experience back quite a bit.
That said, I'd still absolutely give it another shot because there's enough good here to make me want to come back. I'm hoping this visit was more of an'overwhelmed busy day' situation rather than the norm.
Because if the service matched the quality of the atmosphere & food?
This place could easily become one of my regular Montréal stops.
L'entrée sivichi & celle d'avocat étaient excellentes, le poisson frais. Trois tacos aux boeuf étaient suffisants pour deux. Nous en avons apporté à la maison.
Je suis venu sur la recommandation d'un ami & j'ai adoré. Le menu n'est pas trop compliqué, mais tout est vraiment bien fait. Ça faisait longtemps que je n'avais pas mangé des tacos aussi bons. Les tortillas étaient fraîches & tendres. L'endroit est petit, mais avec une ambiance chaleureuse. Comme expérience, c'était simple, mais très axé sur le goût. Je vais définitivement revenir.
Excellent tacos, they have alot of choices for tacos & cocktails ! The Birria tacos was really tasty & would highly recommend it. But it is a little expensive for the amount of food.
These are the best birria tacos in Montreal for sure, I haven't had any even close to as good as the ones served here. I would highly recommend to go & try them atleast once in your life.
Merci d'être revenu à votre ancienne recette avec les légumes grillés sur la plaque!
Les tacos sont parfaitement délicieux!
J'ai ajusté mon avis en mettant 5 étoiles
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Grand fan de votre restaurant depuis environ 6 ans.
Malheureusement lors de notre dernière visite nous avons constaté que vous aviez changé la recette de vos délicieux tacos qui sont maintenant servi avec du pico de gallo (légumes crus) on top au lieu de la parfaite formule poivrons & oignons grillé sur la plaque qui rehaussait à merveille le goût de votre poulet mariné.
J'aime bien aussi le pico de gallo mais comparé aux piments & oignons grillés d'avant je trouve que ça rend vos tacos beaucoup moins intéressant.
De plus, concombres & oignons rouge cru c'est pas facile sur la digestion...
Pourquoi changer une formule gagnante?
Dommage.
sachez que ce restaurant calcule encore les pourboires sur le coût total de la facture (avec taxes). oui, les suggestions de pourboire indiqués respectent la nouvelle loi, mais la machine n'a pas été reprogrammée.
ceci combiné à une expérience culinaire variable (hier soir: bons tacos! mais cocktails très dilués & décevants.). le Tin Tan n'est plus ce qu'il a déjà été.
Last Saturday, my husband & I went to this restaurant to try Mexican food. I am Mexican & my husband is Canadian, & where we live it's very difficult to find truly good Mexican food. I had heard that Montreal has great Mexican cuisine, so I was very excited to come here, especially because of the good reviews.
At first, the service was friendly & everything looked very authentic, which made me even more excited. However, the experience quickly became disappointing. We waited 30 minutes just for someone to take our order, while other tables that arrived after us were served much faster simply because they were larger groups. After waiting another 30 minutes, we were about to leave, but the food finally arrived.
Unfortunately, it was not worth the wait. I ordered tacos gobernador & they were extremely small & not good at all. The salsas had no flavor, & no one ever came back to check on us or ask if we needed anything.
This experience completely took away my desire to try Mexican food at another restaurant
Greatttt birria tacos!! Some of the best in Montreal. Also just amazing vibes & super fun decor inside.
A highlight was weirdly their drip coffee. They put cinnamon in there I think? & it's delicious !!!
I was greated with a smile & some typical latin american music. Place is clean, colorful with funny & tasteful decorations everywhere. I ordered a guac to start & it was perfect! Then 3 gorgeous birria tacos showed up with a cup of jus... Maybe I got lucky but it was some of the best I had in years! Will definitely go back... Muchas gracias!
